DAY 4 of my 12 days of Christmas Cookies/Treats! One of my favorite cookie from around the world, is the Biscotti. I really don’t remember the first time I had it. I have always dunked cookies in my masala chai, the very Indian way of eating a cookie lol. And so I did with the biscotti, although authentically it is dipped in espresso! This cookie comes from Italy, and is called Biscotti which means twice baked, cause it is baked twice, which gives it the slightly crunchy exterior and soft interior. The sweet cookie goes really well with the bitter espresso. Yes! I have tried it that way too and I love it actually ! 🙂 and I can understand why the Italians have it that way.
I love making biscotti this time of the year. It is a great cookie to gift, and it transports well too and lasts longer than most cookies. OK! Star Anise HAS TO BE MY FAVORITE winter spice! I LOVE anything that is licorice in flavor! As a kid, my grandma, uncles and aunts would come from the UK and get bagfuls of the licorice candy and LICORICE ALLSORTS(you can google it). The ALLSORTS were my favorite, and I would literally preserve it, so that it does NOT get over, but if you keep it for long, it hardens, and does not taste good lol. But I would still do it every single time they would visit us and get the candy! Anyways, the point being behind this story is that I LOVE LICORICE! 🙂 So ofcourse I love the flavor of star anise!
I used whole star anise, ground it up in my coffee grinder which works as a great spice grinder, and used the powder in my biscotti. The fragrance is seriously intoxicating! I also used almonds and pistachios, along with dried cherries and orange zest in the dough. The dough is kind of sticky, so you have to have well floured hands to work it. You have to twice bake this cookie, to get its signature crust and that pretty golden color. I used melted white chocolate to drizzle over the biscotti. I have made this cookie various times with different combinations, and it always turns out so well.
Hope you get to try this recipe! If you do, please do not forget to tag #thejamlab on Instagram and/or leave a comment on this blog post.
Day 5: is coming for you tomorrow :).
Cheers,
Amisha
Day 4: Cherry Pistachio-Almond Star-Anise Biscotti with a white chocolate drizzle
Ingredients
- 2 ¾ all purpose flour
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- 1 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- 1 ½ tsp ground star anise powder
- 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 2 tsp almond extract
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tbsp orange zest from one orange
- 1 cup dried cherries
- ½ cup toasted, unsalted almonds
- ½ cup toasted, unsalted pistachios
- Garnish:
- 1 cup white chocolate chips
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, star anise powder, and salt together.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment, whisk the butter and the sugar at high speed for 2-3 minutes. Add in the eggs one at a time, and whisk until incorporated. Scrap the sides of the bowl after each egg addition. Add in the almond and vanilla extract, and orange zest and whisk again until blended. Add in the flour mixture in 2 batches, on low speed, until well incorporated. Add in the nuts and cherries and mix again. The dough is sticky.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- Remove it on a floured surface and flour your hands as well to handle the dough. Divide the dough into 2 halves.
- On a baking sheet with parchment paper, shape the 2 loaves into the length of the baking sheet, about 15 inches, and about 2 inches wide. Bake for 30 minutes until pale golden in color. Let the loaves cool for 15 minutes. Cut each loaf with a serrated knife into ¾ inch slices on a cutting board. Lay them again on the cut side down, close to each other on the baking sheet. You might need one more baking sheet to accommodate all the biscotti. Bake until golden for another 25 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack and cool completely.
- Melt the white chocolate in a double broiler, by placing the white chocolate in a medium glass bowl, that can sit over a small saucepan with simmering water, on the gas stove, on medium heat. Let the white chocolate completely melt. The process takes about 7-10 minutes. Lower the gas to low and let the chocolate stay warm on the double broiler. Using a fork, carefully drizzle the white chocolate over the cooled biscotti – about 3 biscotti at a time to give it the drizzle effect! You can put it in the freezer for a quick setting of the white chocolate about 30 seconds. Let it sit out for 15 minutes after freezing.
- You can store them in an air tight container for about 2 weeks.
